


okay so i'm trapped in a terrifying love cave of death with you. now what?

by honeyteeth



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Boys Kissing, Fluff, Kissing, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Pre-Slash, Secret Tunnels, Slash, also zuko still has his awful ponytail, but this fic is set before he got a redemption arc and a bf, i can hear the song gkgk, i know. i dont like it either, it may be pre but there's def some smoochin, sudden realizations from both boys after said fluff occurs, u know the ones
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-26
Updated: 2018-06-26
Packaged: 2019-05-28 21:23:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15058079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honeyteeth/pseuds/honeyteeth
Summary: Being trapped in a labyrinth of cursed tunnels is bad enough as is. Being trapped in a labyrinth of cursed tunnels with the person you absolutely hate is even WORSE. But what really takes the cake is being trapped in a labyrinth of cursed tunnels with the person you absolutely hate and the only thing the both of you can think of to escape is to get cozy and smooch it up.





	okay so i'm trapped in a terrifying love cave of death with you. now what?

**Author's Note:**

> more ridiculously long titles, baby!!!  
> anyway, i thought i'd write a little oneshot b4 bed. i think i'll keep writin' quickies between chapters of my main story, actually, so that i can stay more active!
> 
> ANYWay do you guys remember in "The Cave of Two Lovers" (episode 2 of season 2) when Aang and Katara are trapped in the dark and Katara saw the two people kissing engraved in the stone? and then she turns to aang and is just like "no homo but we should kiss, maybe that'll get us out" ?? anyone remember that?  
> yeah well this fic is that scene except it's zuko and sokka

"You are  _so_ fucking stupid. I seriously cannot believe that you tried to block off the cave with me inside it...  _while you were standing right next to me._ " A light suddenly burst to life, seeming the match the intensity of the voice who owned it. 

"Yeah, okay, well, maybe it wasn't my  _best_ idea, but I panicked, okay?" Sokka replied meekly to Zuko's harsh tone, hoping that the red glow of the fire would mask the embarrassed flush that had crept across his mocha colored skin. He looked up just in time to see the paler boy roll his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. He let out an irritated sigh as he shook his head, mumbling something about how Water Tribe peasants never learned. There was silence in the cave, the only sound being the occasional pop or crackle of the flame that the firebender held in his open palm, its warm light casting a glow on the walls around the two trapped boys. 

The Cave of Two Lovers was infamous for its rich history, and even  _more_ infamous for its ability to trap anybody who came into the winding tunnels forever unless they could trust and love. Sokka, being the plan-guy, decided that trapping Zuko inside of the caves would be a brilliant idea, seeing as the firebender most definitely didn't trust, let alone love. So, he led the Fire Nation's banished prince into the mouth of the cave, took out his boomerang, and threw it as hard as physically possible. It hit a few loose rocks, which caused a chain reaction and sent a mountain of boulders crashing down on the entrance. It worked perfectly, except for one teeny tiny detail that Sokka had forgotten about: he was in the cave, too. 

Embarrassed, slightly terrified, and honestly feeling a little claustrophobic, Sokka avoided looking his ponytailed enemy directly in the face and didn't try to 'ease the tension' with a witty comment because

**a:**  he was with  _Zuko,_ the freak who had been trying to attackhim and his friends for a while now. If Sokka joked around, he would surely get his ass fully charred before having it handed to him. 

And

**b:** Sokka, though he would never admit it out loud, was scared. The first time he had been trapped, badger-moles helped to guide him and the music-playing hippies out of the cave, but that was only because as it turns out, badger moves are funky little animals that jam the fuck out to any tune being played. This time, however, things were different. He had nothing to play music with, and, moving back to  **a,** he was trapped with one of the most dangerous firebenders he had ever met.

Sokka was more than a little fucked, but he wasn't going to give up that easily. 

"I remember the last time I was here. I think maybe I'll be able to get us back to safety," He explained to Zuko who, surprisingly, listened intently. Sokka noticed how the flame in the bender's palm caused flickering shadows to dance upon a pale face, amber eyes burning fiercely in the dark. He gave a little nod, ponytail swishing behind him as he fell into step next to the Water Tribe boy. 

"If you get us killed in here, I'll murder you." Zuko huffed as they walked, keeping the flame in his hands bright and hot and giving off more than enough light for the two of them. Sokka took a moment to process what had just happened, and then let out a small laugh, more out of surprise than amusement. He hadn't known that the fire prince could have a sense of humor. He decided to push his luck, and reply with a snide remark. 

"Won't you do that anyway, regardless of whether we get out or not?" He tittered, almost nudging Zuko in the side before remembering that it was fucking _Zuko_. The bender shrugged. 

"Perhaps. Though, get me out alive, and I'll give you a five-minute headstart before I chase you down again and obliterate you," He replied, voice nearly free from its edge. Sokka let out a huff of air, almost smiling as he and his worst enemy continued down the path. 

"Maybe I'll be the only one to get out alive; I hear that the badger-moles get pretty feisty. Don't worry, I'll drag your corpse out of the cave, but you'll be remembered as a failure." Sokka actually did laugh, once again resisting the urge to offer a playful nudge or punch to the bender's shoulder. As quickly as the mood rose, however, it dropped right back down to rock bottom. 

"Watch it,  _peasant._ " Zuko snarled, and the tribesman looked over in shock at how quickly the other boy's mood changed. Pale face contorted with hatred, lip curled, and canines bared, Zuko continued, shadows flickering across his face and making him look genuinely  _scary_. "I'm not going to be a failure. I'll get out of this damn cave, then capture the Avatar and present him to my father. Then, he'll love me even more than you could ever imagine," 

Sokka suddenly realized that when he was with Zuko, he shouldn't make jokes about honor or failure or really anything relating to that topic. 

"My father  _will_ accept me back home once I have that little air-nomad brat. He will." Zuko finished, and the water tribesman suddenly noticed the shift in his tone. It had grown less angry and more... Uneasy?

"N-no, no, no, no, no!" Sokka sputtered. "I-I didn't mean that, I..." His voice trailed off, and he decided that it was best not to finish, unless he wanted to be burnt to a crisp. Spirits. Talking to this ponytailed jerk was like walking on eggshells. 

Zuko sighed, sounding frustrated and tired. Sokka gulped as he trudged on. He better be careful around Mr. Sensitive. 

The two continued, turning corners and staying silent until Sokka began to shiver. Sure, he had lived in the freezing cold for most of his life, but something about this cave just chilled him right down to the bones, in both the literal and metaphorical sense. 

"...Are you cold?" Zuko's words were quiet, almost silent, yet they somehow managed to reverberate ever so slightly across the rough surface of the cave's walls. 

"Uh, no, I'm okay," Sokka lied, not really sure what the other boy would have done if he had said 'yes'. The firebender nodded and didn't talk anymore. That was, until, the Water Tribe boy's teeth started chattering together. 

"You  _are_ cold," The fire prince stated.  _No shit, jerkbender. Of course, I'm cold; I'm freezing!_ Sokka thought, defying the impulse to roll his eyes. "I'm not." Zuko continued. This time, icy blue eyes darted to smooth pale skin, brow furrowed, mouth slightly agape in mildly offended expression. 

"Okay? And?" Sokka snapped, growing more and more miffed at the assertions on Zuko's part. 

" _And_ come here, you dunderhead!" Zuko growled, sidestepping towards the tribesman. Sokka panicked, tensing up, ready to struggle away from his soon-to-be captor, but instead--

Zuko slung his arm loosely across the Inuit's shoulders, slowing his pace to match the other's, their footsteps beginning to fall in and out of synchronization. At first, Sokka was slightly stunned, but this soon melted into pure confusion. However, he did notice that his body temperature was rising, and he was feeling much, much better. 

"I'm able to control my body heat if I regulate my breathing in a certain way," Zuko explained. "I figured that if I could do it to myself, why not use it on somebody else?" The question was rhetorical, and even if it hadn't been, Sokka would have been too dazed to answer. 

Eventually, both of them loosened up a tad bit more, sudden exhaustion making them care less about who they were walking with. It seemed as if they were simply going in circles, and the firebender mentioned this many,  _many_ times much to the tribesman's disdain. Finally, they rounded a corner and both, at the same time, noticed a pile of crumbled rocks and a little cave. Perhaps this was closer to the exit! 

Zuko slid his arm off of Sokka's shoulders before sprinting off, taking the fire and only source of light with him. Sokka yelled after him and followed, heart pounding. Did they manage to find the way out? They jogged down the long hallway and stumbled into the room just beyond the pile of crumbled rocks and looked out upon---

a tomb. 

It was the tomb of the two deceased lovers, their story written across stone of their graves. 

Sokka slumped down on a slab of rock, burying his face in his hands. He squeezed his eyes shut, the sudden realization of just how alone and just how stuck he truly was in that cave hitting him hard across the face. It didn't leave a pretty mark, either, the tribesman decided, as he attempted to hold back the few tears of stress that threatened to slip from the corners of his icy blues at any time now. This wasn't brave or manly at all-- it was stupid. And it was all Sokka's fault. He suppressed a sob and took a deep breath. 

"Hey, if you're done sulking over there, come and look at this!" Zuko called from somewhere across the tomb. Sokka lifted his head and saw that the prince was standing in front of a large stone mural, depicting two people on their knees, fingers laced together, lips pressing together in a sweet kiss. Sokka trotted over, stopping next to the slightly shorter boy. 

"'Love is brighter in the dark,'" Sokka read the words engraved in stone. "I-- what? What the hell's that supposed to mean? How will this help us at all?" He nearly shouted, waving his hands dramatically up in the air.

"Could be a riddle," Zuko suggested. The tribesman nodded in agreement at this, placing his thumb and forefinger on his chin, deep in thought. 

The curse said that in order to survive the tunnels, one needed to trust and love. The mural had two people kissing. The cave was dark, save, of course, for Zuko's flame, which had shrunken considerably in size due to the fact that he was so tired. Two people kissing. The riddle stated that "love was brightest in the dark". There were two people kissing on the walls. The cave was dark. Two people. Sokka. Zuko. The dark. Kissing.

_Oh._

Zuko seemed to come to this realization at the exact same time Sokka did, and wide amber eyes met icy blue ones.

Sokka looked upon the face of the boy who he had hated  _so much_  to see that it was different. His lips were resting delicately on his face, not curled into a snarl or pulled tight into an angry frown as they usually were, but slightly parted in an expression of quiet shock. The glow of the small flame still cupped in his trembling hand cast shadows across his sculpted face, making the acute edges of his jawline look much more gentle. The light was absorbed into his sharp amber eyes, flickering and dancing inside of them as if they were alive. However, "sharp" wasn't quite the word to describe this at this moment. They were soft, looking more like warm sunshine or sweet honey. 

Zuko was beautiful. 

Sokka wasn't quite thinking as he stepped closer, ever so lightly reaching out to touch the bender's face and cup in his calloused hand, thumb absentmindedly rubbing comforting circles into reddening cheeks. He leaned down, only slightly, though, and moved his head closer, their noses bumping together. He stopped there, suddenly, breath hitched and heart hammering violently against the walls of his ribcage, threatening to thump right out of his chest.

It was the fire prince who closed the gap, eyes closed and expression shy, tilting his head so that their noses wouldn't crash into each other awkwardly. Sokka had to resist the urge to pull the boy closer in order to deepen the kiss. Zuko's mouth was so  _warm,_ and the faint taste of berries lingered on his lips. The way he seemed to lean into Sokka sent the tribesman's brain in a fog. 

The kiss was broken by the same person who had finalized it just moments ago. Zuko pulled back, looking away shyly. Sokka couldn't help but smile at this; as tough and loud and big as the fire prince made himself out to be, at this particular moment, he looked so adorably bashful. 

The two locked eyes once more, and in a rush of heat and impulse, the Water Tribe boy grabbed at the bender's shoulders and yanked him forward, kissing him hard and fast. The passion was returned, and Zuko's hands wrapped tightly around Sokka's neck, pulling him closer, deepening the embrace. In his motion, his flame had gone out, but neither of them noticed, it seemed. They were too intent on making out right there in that cave, at that instant. 

Sokka slid his hand that currently wasn't cupping the prince's face down his side, feeling the other boy shutter against him. He smiled with satisfaction, breaking away just long enough to take a breath before mashing their lips together once more. Feather-light fingers found the end of Zuko's shirt, and slowly slid under the garment, grazing warm skin. 

At this, Zuko-- fire prince, heir to the throne, jerkbender supreme, fucking  **Zuko** \--  _whimpered_ into Sokka's mouth at the touch, his body melting against the tribesman's, skin growing much, much warmer than before. 

Oh, Spirits, this changed  _everything._

Sokka continued kissing, exerting ten times as much passion and desire as before, nibbling on the bender's lower lip and squeezing at flesh ever so slightly. He basked in the tiny moans and whines from the other boy, loving how he squirmed in his grasp, obviously trying his best to stay under control, but clearly failing. 

The two didn't notice the glowing blue crystals up above until Sokka broke the kiss, looking at Zuko through half-lidded eyes, expression glazed over with desire. 

"Sokka, look up," Zuko panted, a similar expression plastered across his face. The tribesman did and saw that the blue crystals that expelled a warm light were making a path-- a path straight to the exit of the cave. "Uh, as it turns out, the answer to the um-- the riddle-- was to just... Turn all of the lights off." The bender said, embarrassed, blush laying on thick across his pale cheeks. 

"So we didn't even need to kiss, huh?" Sokka replied awkwardly, scratching at the back of his neck. His lips still tingled pleasantly. 

\----------------------------------------------☆

The warm glow of sunshine was fully welcomed as the two exited the cave, Sokka smiling wide and stretching, closing his eyes and just letting the sun caress his skin. 

"Well, uh, now that we're out, I guess I have to... To threaten to kill you again," Zuko chuckled. Despite his tone, he looked a little upset. Sokka furrowed his brow, frowning slightly. 

"Oh. Right, I... I forgot about that." He replied. Zuko's face changed from solemn to bewildered. 

"What?! How? You hate me! And I hate you-- I think. Mostly. Maybe. I maybe mostly hate you!" 

"Well, when you make out with someone, you grow a little fond of them," Sokka smiled shyly, nudging into the fire prince with his shoulder. 

"Oh. I guess you're right," Zuko sighed deeply, looking down, shame painted on every edge of his face. "I'm sorry, Sokka," He said. 

"For what? I mean, obviously for being a terrible person, but I mean, why are you apologizing  _today_?" Sokka replied. 

"Well, if I had just snuffed the flame sooner, you wouldn't have had to try and kiss me! I just feel bad for you, for some reason. I genuinely don't know why I feel so guilty, but I do, so I'm sorry." 

Sokka only smiled, shyly moving closer so that their arms were pressed together. He caught Zuko's gaze, giving him an almost affectionate look. 

"I think I'm glad you didn't try to extinguish the fire sooner," He remarked. And for the first time in the history of ever, he saw Zuko smile, genuine and soft and real and wonderful.

The two then stood in silence, and for a moment, just a little sliver of time, both were able to put their differences behind them and simply enjoy each other's company. 

**Author's Note:**

> this is real sloppy and just loosely slapped together especially near the end, im sorry!!! i hope some of you enjoyed it anyway


End file.
